Homegirl London pays homage to Julia Brendel. Julia makes luxury fabrics and beautiful home furnishings – table cloths, table runners, lamp shades, cushions, throws and scarves. Her style is a contemporary take on romantic folk costumes and traditional craft skills from countries like Poland, Hungary and India. I caught up with Julia to find out more.
Meet Julia Brendel
Julia Brendel came from an artsy background – “I grew up in an Art imbued home as both my parents were Historians of Art in Communist Poland.” This influenced her decision to study at The Academy of Fine Arts in Poznan, Poland for five years.
Julia Brendel
Everything changed when Julia came to the UK in 2000. She wasn’t intending to stay but as fate would have it she met her husband and started a family. Wanting a flexible career which stimulated her desire to design and fitted around family life, Julia set up her business in May 2012. It’s very much a joint venture – her husband looks after the finances allowing Julia to do what she does best – be creative.
View the Julia Brendel Collection
The core collection is called ‘Origins’ which stands for – “The beginning, start, genesis and birth.” This includes five varieties of fabric – Medallions, Kurpie, Hungarica, India and Nostalgia. Julia tells me – “My Hungarian and Polish roots lay at the core of the fabrics with influences drawn from different cultures, beliefs, languages, patterns, flavours and scents. It’s driven from my passion for folk designs, costumes, lace and embroidery.” This love for folk and craft stems back to Julia’s late teens – “I always admired the skill, complexity and time spent in the old days on everyday objects.”
Medallions: A romantic and light design inspired by Polish folk paper cut outs. The combination of cotton and linen makes this ideal curtain fabric and is also perfect for soft furnishings.
Medallions
Kurpie: This pattern is based on the local costumes and unique folk embroidery from the Kurpie region in Poland. The material is a mix of viscose, cotton and flax which can be used for upholstery and curtain fabric.
Kurpie
Hungarica: Inspired by 19th century Hungarian embroidered table cloths and folk costumes. Given a modern twist with a Jacquard version of motifs arrange in classic vertical stripes. The fabric is pure silk and is suitable for soft furnishings, especially luxury cushions.
Hungarica
India: Colourful, rich dyes and beautiful patterns inspired by India.
India
Nostalgia: Features a cross-stitching effect in a cotton and linen mix for a natural feel.
Nostalgia
You can buy these fabrics to cover your sofa, dress your window and make soft furnishings. Alternatively, you can purchase the table cloths, lamp shades, cushions, scarves and throws Julia has already created.
Throws
Table Cloths
Buy Julia Brendel Products
To find out more about Julia and to buy her products go to Julia Brendel. Price guide: Fabric £146-159 per metre. Cushions £90-250, Light Shades £90-225, Throws £380, Table Cloths £60-123 and Scarves £49-240.
Author: Homegirl London. Photography: Julia Brendel. Thanks: Julia Brendel and Hannah Waugh.
